24 Weeks Pregnant

For the future mom

You are gaining extra pounds of weight. That’s where the headaches, pains in the bladder, heaviness in legs and exhaustion come from. These all will still follow you further so it is time to ease your condition. Pick a pair of comfortable shoes and use every possibility to give your legs a rest: legs should be positioned above the heart level.

For many this month is the best time for pregnancy. You will be looking good and feel very happy. If up until now you have been adding weight slowly, then now you will то сейчас можете быстро располнеть. Pregnancy becomes noticeable.

Plumpness of hands and shoulders is the result of water delay in body; it will disappear after birth.

Your face has become plumper than usual because body retains more water.

The dark circles around nipples get more noticeable.

Belly starts to get larger.

The top of the uterus has gotten higher than the navel area. You can now easily feel the baby’s moves and even can tell if he is awake or asleep. Braxton Hicks contractions still continue. It is important not to confuse them with premature pains and the beginning of premature births, which statistically more often start in the summer period and are caused by dehydration; so try to drink enough amount of water. Call the ambulance if you detect one of these symptoms:

Contractions or spasms more than 5 times per hour,

bright bloody discharge from vagina,

a sudden puffiness of the face and hands,

Pains during urination, although they might be signs of cystitis or kidney infection.

sharp and long pains in the stomach,

sharp and continuous vomiting,

a sudden discharge of clear and watery liquid from vagina,

pulling pain at the waist area,

feeling of pressure on the pelvis area

New sensations:

You have gained considerable amount of weight up to this month.

Now you will need wide maternity clothes.

You may be sweating excessively, now it is hard for you to stand the heat. Drink more water and do not wear clothes made of synthetic fabrics.

What to do:

If you want to breastfeed your child right away consult with a doctor or a midwife on how to prepare the breasts for feeding to avoid problems in the future.

While resting, try to keep your legs higher placing a pillow under them to avoid edema.

Your baby

The baby’s face has almost fully taken shape. Eyes although still shut as before are not so widely placed and ears are already at their set position. Eyelashes have grown and a bed of hair continues to form on the head. The baby’s face now looks exactly how when he will be after birth. Baby has gotten larger and fuller; now he is occupying the whole uterus and it is becoming tenser for him. He no longer can turn over and in fluids but as before grabs to the umbilical cord and touches everything around with his hands. He is more and more listening to the external world. If you have felt fright, he will also be frightened. Research has shown the fetus is able to remain in a state of wakefulness for several hours taking turns during periods of unrest and uneasiness.

Your child almost is completely generated, and starts to accumulate hypodermic fat. The purpose of hypodermic fat consists of keeping the body heat. As it is known many newborns have a hard time adjusting their body temperature in the beginning and it is a greater problem for children born prematurely. The babies born before their term have a chance to survive only under special care and favorable conditions. They probably remain in the intensive care for several weeks. It means for example, if the kid was born on 26-28th weeks, he will be kept in the intensive therapy for approximately 12 weeks. By the 24th week of pregnancy fat and sweat glands start to function; the baby’s lungs develop further. In them the film which does not allow them to stick together at breath is formed. If the child is born at this time and will be provided with necessary care he could survive. The main problem for prematurely born children is the development of their lungs. Therefore, a steroid, Betamethasone is given to the babies for the development of their lungs outside of the uterus.

Baby grows

the baby can already become angry. This is proven by the photographs with looks of wrinkled lips and crying - so the child shows his discontent. By the way, to have a rest at night, the kid "lies down" to sleep and sees dreams

The fat deposition has occurred yet, that’s why a skinny body

The sweat glands form in the skin.

Baby has well-developed muscles of the hands and legs and he regularly checks their strength. The active cycles when you can hear his movements are replaced by periods of profound rest.

He can cough or hiccup, they feel like a faint knocking inside of you.

Baby’s skin thickens.

Eyes seem too large.

Fetus Length and weight

Length from crown to sacrum - approximately 11.81 inches.

Weight - approximately 1.2-1.3 lbs

Weight Addition

By 24th week

More likely you as previously will be gaining 110 lbs a week. But if prior to pregnancy you weighed less the norm then weight will be growing faster. Optimal addition of weight until the 24th week is 9.9 lbs.

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